The Familial Revelation
by NerdForestGirl
Summary: Amy's been keeping a secret from Sheldon and her friends. When a minor accident causes Amy to spill the beans, Amy learns that her friends care about her more than she ever imagined. Two-shot. Themes include death and grieving, but no major character death.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is a short two-shot. Deals with themes including death, but no major character death. Thanks for reading.**

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Amy woke up and her apartment was freezing. At least as freezing as it could be in January in Southern California. Still, it was far too cold for her to be used to, so she pulled her blankets tighter around her. She couldn't get back to sleep and she started shivering, so she got out of bed, pulled her robe around herself and flicked the light switch. It didn't turn on. Neither did the one in the living room. Neither did any of the other lights and appliances around her apartment.

Amy called the number for the people who managed her building. She was met with a message instead of a real person, but she still learned that the power and heat were likely to be out until Monday at the soonest. Amy groaned and sat down on her couch in the dark. She could only see by the light of her cell phone.

It was three in the morning, so Amy didn't know who to call. She thought there was a chance that Penny might still be up, but that seemed unlikely. Her parents, Sheldon and Leonard, Rajesh, and the Wolowitz's were all guaranteed to still be asleep. Still, she had recently received a key from Sheldon to his and Leonard's apartment. Maybe she could go over there, let herself in, and sleep on their couch until she could ask Penny about maybe staying there for the weekend.

Amy packed a bag with a few things and went down to her car. She drove to her boyfriend's apartment building and made her way up to the fourth floor. Then she quietly let herself in, but it suddenly seemed wrong to just be letting herself into their apartment without asking. She decided to stop in Sheldon's room and ask for permission to wait there instead of just going to sleep.

She knocked softly before just opening the door. Sheldon sat up a little and looked at her. He was frowning.

"Sheldon? It's Amy," she said.

"I know who you are. What are you doing?" Sheldon asked.

"The power went out in my apartment. It's going to be out for a couple of days. I was wondering if I could hang out here until Penny is awake and I can ask her about staying the weekend," Amy explained quickly.

Sheldon shook his head, and Amy was a little disappointed that he wouldn't let her even sleep on his couch for a couple of hours. "What are you doing out of bed?" Sheldon asked.

"The power is out in my..," Amy started again, but she stopped when Sheldon pulled the blankets back on his bed.

"Get back into bed," Sheldon said sleepily.

Amy wondered if Sheldon was talking in his sleep. He seemed to be under the impression that they slept together. "Sheldon, I'll just go sleep on the couch," Amy told him.

"Amy, you are being ridiculous. Just get back into bed, and we'll talk about it tomorrow," Sheldon said.

"Are you sure?" Amy asked.

"Yes," Sheldon said.

Amy was still pretty sure that this was the wrong thing to do, but he insisted and she was so tired. She just took off her shoes, sweater and blouse before getting into his bed.

"Thank you," Sheldon said before he put his arm around her and kissed her neck once. Then it seemed that he was asleep again. He had only ever kissed her a couple of times before, so it was a bit of a shock that he did that. The whole experience had Amy unsettled for some reason. She thought about slipping back out of his bed. He was probably going to be upset when he was fully awake and found her there. She started slipping out of his bed when Sheldon tightened his grip on her and pulled her back to him. He was stronger than she could have believed, and she knew she was stuck. It was over an hour until Amy drifted off to sleep.

Sheldon woke up and nuzzled his face further into Amy's hair. He knew it was the dream again. He'd given up on fighting it a lot time ago. This particular one was very vivid. Amy seemed warmer than normal and she smelled better and the colors seemed brighter. It was also strange because she was wearing a t-shirt instead of a nightgown. The dream had always been exactly the same for as long as he'd had it, so these changes seemed a little strange.

Then he remembered. Or at least he thought he did. Something about Amy going to sleep on the couch instead of in his arms and how that was unacceptable. He made her get into bed with him. Was that real? That had never happened in the dream before. Sheldon started inching away from the woman in his bed. When he had his arms away from her, she grabbed the blanket and pulled it around her tighter like she was cold. Sheldon almost regretted taking his arms and his heat away from her.

Then he stayed still for several more minutes trying to figure out why Amy was sleeping in his bed. It was becoming more and more clear that this was reality rather than The Dream. Part of him had been wanting this for months. He felt like he should be grateful that he had somehow pulled it off without even being aware of it. The other part of him was screaming at him: YOU JUST SLEPT WITH A WOMAN.

Then as he kept watching, she turned toward him and was nearly touching him. Her face was still peaceful with sleep. Then her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at him sleepily. He could tell that she wasn't quite with him until she moved away from him a little.

"Hi," Amy said shyly.

"Good morning. Can you tell me why you are in my bed?" Sheldon said more calmly than he felt.

"The power went out in my apartment in the middle of the night, and is supposed to be out for a few days. I came over here to sleep on your couch until it was late enough to ask Penny if I could stay with her until it was fixed. I came in here to ask you if it was okay, and you kept insisting that I get back into bed with you. I knew that you were still mostly asleep, but you were so insistent, and I was so cold and tired. I tried to get back out of bed about thirty seconds after I was here, but you wouldn't let go of me," Amy explained.

"Okay. Well, it was a mistake of me to invite you into my bed. I was likely being affected by a dream at the time," Sheldon told her.

Amy started scrambling to get back from Sheldon. Of course he thought it was a mistake to invite her into his bed. Amy knew she had been silly to hold a little hope he would like it the way he had when he kissed her on the train. Then again, he hadn't even liked that enough to do it more than a couple of times since then. Sheldon's bed was smaller than her own, and it was half occupied by her boyfriend. She didn't notice when she had reached the edge of his bed.

Amy screamed as she fell to the floor. Sheldon jumped up and ran around the bed and looked down at Amy. Her eyes were closed as he knelt down, but they opened and she said, "Ow."

"What were you doing?" Sheldon asked. He was concerned about her. They were just talking and she suddenly was squirming away from him and falling on the floor.

There was a knock at the door. "Sheldon, buddy, is everything okay?" Leonard asked through the door.

"Can you come help me get Amy off the floor?" Sheldon asked loudly enough for Leonard to hear.

Leonard opened the door a crack. "Are you guys dressed?"

"Of course we're dressed. Come help me," Sheldon said shortly.

"I'm fine, Sheldon. I just need a minute," Amy said. She knew that she had hit both her head and her elbow pretty hard when she fell, but she thought she would be able to get back up on her own. Amy sat up on her own and was a little dizzy. "Okay. I am going to need a little help. The room is spinning," Amy admitted.

"That's it. I'm calling an ambulance," Sheldon said.

"Please don't. I'll be fine in a minute," Amy said.

Leonard came over and got between Amy and the bed. Then he and Sheldon each took an arm and pulled her up. She sat the edge of Sheldon's bed for a moment. Sheldon started inspecting her head with his fingertips. He was undeniably gentle, but she still winced when Sheldon touched her.

"I'm with Sheldon. Let's get you to the hospital," Leonard said. He grabbed her shoes and helped her put them on. Then he put his arm around her waist and started helping her to the living room.

"I'd rather not," Amy said weakly. Neither of the men listened, and she knew that head injuries weren't the kind of thing one should play around with.

Leonard helped Amy to the couch and asked her to wait while he got dressed. Leonard and Sheldon quickly dressed before returning. Sheldon brought Amy her sweater before they all started for the door. Sheldon wouldn't let Leonard help Amy anymore. He insisted on doing it himself. He even thought about scooping her up into his arms, but he was worried he wouldn't be able to make it down all of those stairs like that. Instead, he just slowly helped Amy down the stairs.

"Guys, I really think you are both overreacting," Amy said as they started to get into Leonard's car.

"Amy, you are a neuroscientist. If anyone knows how dangerous a head injury is, it's you. Plus, we should make sure you haven't broken that elbow the way you are babying it," Sheldon told her. He got into the backseat with her and asked her questions the whole drive to the hospital to keep her alert.

"You guys go in. I'll park and meet you inside," Leonard told them as he pulled up to the Emergency Room.

Sheldon got out of the car and ran around to help Amy. She wasn't even feeling dizzy anymore, but he wouldn't let her walk in unaided. He sat her down and went to talk to someone about getting her looked at. Sheldon returned with some paperwork that he helped her fill out. Then Amy found her insurance card and sent Sheldon back with all of it.

When he came back, Amy put her head on Sheldon's shoulder, and he told her it was going to be alright. That he was there. He'd learned that that was important when he had taken Penny to the Emergency Room years earlier.

Leonard came in and sat next to Sheldon while Sheldon filled him in. They said it would be another ten minutes or so before someone could look at Amy. When they came to get Amy, she got up and followed. She didn't expect it when Sheldon came with.

They were taken to a little room with a bed and a chair. Amy sat on the bed while they waited for the doctor to to come in. Sheldon held Amy's hand, and was unusually sweet to her. He felt a little guilty about her having fallen from his bed. He only let go when the doctor came in and started asking questions. Then the doctor looked at Amy's elbow and her head. She winced when he probed the back of her head with his fingers, so Sheldon grabbed her hand again.

"It doesn't look like you have a concussion, but I'd like to get an x-ray just to make sure. We'll also take a look at the elbow," the doctor said. "Any other questions or concerns?"

Sheldon looked at Amy, but she shook her head. "Thank you, Doctor," she added before he left.

Amy just squeezed Sheldon's hand when they were alone. She was a little scared even though she knew she was fine. She had never liked hospitals much. She supposed nobody liked them a lot. It struck her as a little funny that her lab wasn't much different in ascetic, but a million miles away in feeling.

A tech came to get Amy, and Sheldon went back to the waiting room to wait with Leonard. He filled him in while they waited. Then Sheldon pulled out his phone and started playing with it, but it wasn't holding his attention.

"She's fine. They are just checking. You said they didn't think she even had a concussion," Leonard said.

Sheldon just nodded solemnly. After another fifteen minutes, a nurse came to find him. "Sheldon Cooper?"

Sheldon stood suddenly. "Hi. Ms. Fowler is done with her x-ray. She's asked if you would go back to the room while she waits for the results," the nurse said. Sheldon nodded and followed her back.

The nurse opened the door for Sheldon and he walked into the same little room they had been in before. Amy was sitting on the bed with her knees pressed to her chest and her good arm wrapped around her legs.

"Is everything still okay?" Sheldon asked. He was concerned because she looked so small and scared on that bed.

"I just don't like hospitals much," Amy said so quietly that even Sheldon's advanced hearing almost couldn't catch it.

"Why would you? Germs, florescent lighting, that smell," Sheldon started, but then he noticed that Amy was shaking a little. He stopped talking and just took her hand back into his. Touch wasn't often comforting to him, but he knew it helped her.

"My little brother was sick a lot when I was a kid. I spent a lot of time waiting in hospitals," Amy said.

Sheldon tilted his head at Amy. He thought she was an only child. Then he got it. She was. Now. Sheldon squeezed Amy's hand. He wondered why she had never told him about this before. He didn't know how to respond other than just being there, so he did that.

"His name was Aaron. He was three years younger than me," Amy told Sheldon. He just stood there and listened to her tell him about the brother he never even knew existed. About how when Amy was eight her brother was diagnosed with leukemia and how for three years after that everything became about Aaron's treatments until, suddenly, he was gone.

Amy was in tears when the doctor came in to tell her that x-rays showed that she was just fine. "We'll get you out of here as soon as we can," Sheldon said as he kept hold of that hand. He knew he would refuse to let of it again until they were out the door. Sheldon had seen Amy giddy and angry and sad, but never broken like this. Even he could see it on her face and the way she moved.

They left the little room together. The nurse told Amy to take it easy and get some rest, but that she was otherwise fine to leave. Amy signed some paperwork and they went to find Leonard.

Leonard could see that Amy was shaken up, so he ran over. "Is everything okay?" he asked.

Amy nodded then hugged Leonard which was awkward since Sheldon still had her good hand, but she managed it. She would have preferred hugging Sheldon, but she knew he wouldn't tolerate it the way that Leonard would. Amy just needed to be reassured by a friend. She and Leonard weren't exactly close, but she knew he cared about her.

Leonard rubbed Amy's back while looking quizzically at Sheldon. Amy clearly needed comfort, so Sheldon put his arm around her as soon as she let Leonard go. He felt out of his depth. He didn't comfort people, and people never asked him for it. Still, Amy leaned into Sheldon as they walked out to Leonard's car.

Amy didn't know why she told him about Aaron. She never talked about her brother. Other than family, no one knew of him, and it seemed to be an unspoken pact that even they never spoke of him. Part of Amy wished that she could take back telling Sheldon. At least she knew that he probably would never bring it up. Sheldon didn't like emotion. She had probably scared him enough for a lifetime already.

Amy was exhausted when they got back to Sheldon and Leonard's apartment. Plus her head was still killing her. She wished she could sleep in a bed instead of Penny's couch. Then Amy realized she hadn't even asked her friend about staying the weekend. At least it seemed late enough that Penny would be awake.

Amy went in to Sheldon's room to retrieve her bag, so she could go ask Penny about sleeping on her couch.

"No. You can't go to bed yet. I need to change the sheets," Sheldon said. Then he turned to Leonard and said, "Can you make her some soup while I change the sheets on my bed?"

"Yeah. Just sit down on the couch, Amy. I'll bring it over to you," Leonard said.

Amy just stood in the living room looking from one man to the other. Sheldon walked over to her and gently guided her to the couch. "I know you are tired, but you need to eat something, and I was going to change those sheets today anyway," he said.

"I need to go ask Penny if I can sleep on her couch," Amy said.

"Amy, really? I've committed to take care of you in writing. That does not include having you sleep on Penny's couch. Now, sit here, eat the soup when Leonard brings it over, and then you'll take a nap in my bed. You'll be in violation of the Relationship Agreement if you don't," Sheldon said sternly. Then he got up and walked into his room.

"He's just worried about you," Leonard said. Then he pulled the soup out of the microwave, put some crackers in it, and brought it over to Amy. "He's not the best at showing it. I've got some errands to run. Will you be okay?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Leonard," Amy said. She knew she was in capable hands.

Amy was slowly eating the soup when Sheldon came back out of his room. He brought her some pain killers without her even asking. Then he just sat next to her. He still didn't know what to say about the things she had told him at the hospital. He knew that he should say something, but that had never been his forte. She would know what to say. Even if she had to be blunt about it, Amy would know how to talk to him about it. If only he could ask her.

As soon as Amy had finished the soup, Sheldon took the bowl from her. He washed it before coming back and helping her walk to the bathroom. He brought her her bag so she could change before taking a nap. Amy got dressed in the pajamas and walked into Sheldon's room. He was sitting on his bed waiting for her to come back. When she did, he jumped up and pulled the blankets back for her. When she got into the bed, Sheldon pulled the blankets up all the way to her chin and then tucked her in. Then he placed a kiss to her forehead.

"Will you stay with me?" Amy asked. "Just for a minute?" She felt like a little kid, but being at that hospital today made her feel like a little kid again.

Sheldon looked unsure, but then he nodded. He walked to the other side and lay down on top of the covers. He wanted Amy to fall asleep, so he didn't want to talk to her. They just both lay there being quiet until Sheldon started humming. Then a moment later, he was singing Amy Soft Kitty.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you for all of the lovely responses to the first chapter of this story, including a few requests to make this story longer. I don't know if there is more to tell here, but Amy's past and her family are something that I always want to see explored more. Thank you for reading. I'll see you folks next time.**

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When Sheldon looked over at Amy again, she seemed to be sleeping peacefully. He slipped out of the bed and out of his room and out of his apartment. Then he knocked on the door across the hall.

"Hey, Sheldon. I heard Amy had a bit of an accident this morning. Is she okay?" Penny asked when she answered the door.

"Yeah. She's sleeping right now. Can I come in?" Sheldon asked.

"Yeah. What's up?" Penny asked.

"Has Amy ever told you about her brother?" Sheldon started.

"Sweetie, Amy doesn't have a brother. She told me that she's an only child several times," Penny said looking at Sheldon like he was the one with a bump on the head.

"She told me this morning that she had a little brother, but he died when she was a kid. You're her best friend. I was just wondering if she had ever told you. I understand why she had never told me. I've been told that I'm not very warm, but you are," Sheldon explained.

"No. I've never heard anything about a brother," Penny said as she sat down on the couch next to Sheldon. "How did he die?"

"Cancer. When he was eight," Sheldon said sadly. He was thinking about how Amy's voice broke as she told him about it.

"Poor Amy," Penny said.

"Do I say something to her?" Sheldon asked.

"Just let her know you are willing to listen and mean it," Penny told him.

"That's it?"

"Sorry, Sheldon. That's all you really can do. You lost your dad. Was there anything anyone could do that would make it better?" Penny asked.

"No," Sheldon said. Sheldon was frustrated. It wasn't often that he came upon a problem that he couldn't solve. He didn't like it, but he understood. Sheldon decided to go be there for Amy even though she was likely still asleep. He said goodbye to Penny and went back to his apartment.

In his room, Amy's arm was reaching across the bed like she was looking for him in her sleep. Sheldon decided that a little nap wouldn't hurt, so he changed into his pajamas and got into his bed with her. She pulled her arm back to her body once he was there. Sheldon had to admit to himself, even if he couldn't to anyone else, it was nice falling asleep with Amy next to him.

Sheldon woke up, but didn't leave Amy except for a quick trip to the bathroom. He wanted to make sure that he was there if she needed something. She didn't try to cuddle him or anything in her sleep. In fact, she seemed to be conscious of his location even in her sleep and tried to keep a careful no contact position.

When Amy did wake up she was surprised that Sheldon was still in the bed with her. Though, she knew he must have left for a little while because he was in pajamas now.

"Don't fall out of bed again," Sheldon said. He was worried that she would panic and try to get away from him again.

"I won't," Amy told him with a smile. She was trying to find a little humor in the day's events.

"About what you told me earlier..." Sheldon started.

"I don't want to talk about it," Amy interrupted him.

"I just want you to know that I will listen," Sheldon finished.

"I don't want to talk about it!" Amy nearly shouted. "It was a mistake telling you. Just forget about it, okay?"

"Okay," Sheldon said. "The offer still stands," he added. He wanted to make sure she knew that he was there for her.

"This is all your fault, so just drop it," Amy said.

"What is my fault?"

"When he died, I swore I wouldn't have any love in my life again. I didn't want friends, and I certainly didn't want a boyfriend. I found love to be an unnecessary cultural construct that added no value to my life. It hurt too much and it wasn't worth it. However, despite my protests, my mother made me date. She knew how I felt, but she seemed to think she could make me love again by getting me to date. Instead, I found you. You seemed so much like me that I thought we could be friends, and I could use you to get my mother off my case. You could be someone I could talk to without ever really feeling anything. You would never make me love you. And then you did. You made me love you and you made me love your friends. Do you have any idea how much pain that is going to cause me one day?" Amy said. By the time she stopped, she was sobbing.

"Amy," was all Sheldon could say. He reached out his hand to touch her shoulder, but she pulled away from him.

"Don't, Sheldon. You aren't allowed to pretend that you care about this. You've never cared about my feelings the whole time we've been together," Amy said.

That stung Sheldon. He knew that he wasn't the best boyfriend and he knew that he made plenty of mistakes, but he often went out of his comfort zone to be there for Amy.

"That's not fair. I always care about your feelings," Sheldon said.

"That's funny. Can you give me an example?" Amy asked. She realized that she was being unfairly mean to Sheldon. "I'm sorry. I know you care in your own way," she added quickly before Sheldon could say anything.

"I let you sleep in my bed," Sheldon answered anyway. Didn't she see what a big deal that was? She was the only person who was even allowed to come into his room when she wanted. She was the only person he had ever kissed. He loved her. He told her all of those things while she sat quietly. "I'm not saying that you need to talk to me about him or what happened, but I am here. I can't imagine it's the same, but I do know what it's like to lose someone I loved very much," Sheldon finished.

Sheldon didn't know what else to do, so he just kept lying there next to Amy. He didn't flinch away when she moved to put her arm around him. She was still crying, so he just let her hold him for a while. Then he moved to gently rub her back in soothing circles.

Through her sobs, Sheldon heard Amy say something he couldn't understand. "Deep breath," Sheldon said. After she did, he said, "Okay. What was that?"

"He wanted me to read him a story. I wouldn't because I had to do my homework. I promised him that I would read him a story the next day, but then he didn't make it through the night. I never got to read him that story," Amy said.

"You couldn't have known what was going to happen," Sheldon said. "You were just a little girl."

"I was eleven. At that age, you were graduating high school. I should have put him before my calculus homework. I knew he wasn't going to make it by then," Amy said. Then she pressed her face into Sheldon's chest. She was still upset, but she felt a little lighter talking to Sheldon about it. Not even her parents knew about the guilt she held onto all these years.

"I hadn't seen my dad in almost a year when he died. I kept putting off going home, and then it was too late," Sheldon said. He was trying to share with her, but he didn't know if it was helping. Amy's pain felt like a stab in the chest. He would do anything to make her stop hurting in that moment. Sheldon just felt so lost, but he knew he had to help her.

Amy started sobbing harder into Sheldon's chest again, so he stopped talking. He just kept rubbing her back and reminding her to breathe. Those were the only things that seemed to be helping. She was starting to calm a little when Leonard knocked on Sheldon's door twenty minutes later with dinner.

"We'll be out in a little bit," Sheldon said loudly to Leonard. Then he turned to Amy and said, "Do you want to eat now, or should I tell him that you are still resting?"

"I'll eat now," Amy said. Then she grabbed a tissue from Sheldon's nightstand and tried to clean up her face a little. She noticed that Sheldon's pajama top was tear stained, but he didn't seem to care. He just pulled his robe over it and went out to the living room.

Uncharacteristically, Sheldon forgot that everyone was coming over for dinner that night. His apartment was already full when he walked out there.

"In bed with your lady, Sheldon?" Howard asked.

"We were just taking a nap," Sheldon said.

"Sure," Howard replied as he looked at Bernadette with his eyebrows raised.

"She hit her head this morning," Penny snapped at Howard.

"Too bad it didn't knock some sense into her and made her leave Sheldon," Howard said back. Then he stopped when Amy appeared. She'd been in the bathroom and had washed her face, but they could all still tell she was upset.

Amy sat down next to Sheldon. She wondered if she should have changed into her clothes, but no one said anything about her pajamas. Penny touched her arm as she walked by in a way that made her think that Sheldon had told her friend about Aaron.

"Penny, please don't tell anyone," Amy said in a quiet voice. "Sheldon? Please? No one else."

"Of course not, but everyone in this room loves you. You don't have to hide anything from us," Penny told her. Leonard looked at Penny, but she just shook her head.

Bernadette was on the other side of Amy from Sheldon. Bernie just grabbed Amy's hand and squeezed it quickly before Sheldon handed his girlfriend a plate of food.

"Thanks," Amy said quietly with her head down. It was both to Penny for her words and to Sheldon for the food.

Leonard, Howard, Bernadette, and Raj all sat quietly because they had no idea what was happening. They were clearly left out of the loop, but it seemed like something very sensitive. It made dinner a little awkward, but they eventually started talking again. Amy remained quiet, but she was relieved when things seemed to go back to normal.

Despite the nap, Amy was tired when Howard and Bernadette got up to leave. Bernadette leaned in and told Amy that she would always listen without judgment. Then Raj got up and he told Amy that he cared about her and squeezed her shoulders before he left.

"Leonard, can you give us a few minutes?" Penny asked once it was just the four of them.

"Yeah," Leonard said. He got up and went into his bedroom.

When they were alone, Amy spoke first. "I don't want to talk about it," she said as she pulled her knees to her chest. "It was twenty years ago."

"It's obvious that it still hurts you," Penny said as she got up and moved to sit next to Amy. "You don't have to talk about it, but, sweetie, we love you. We want to help you though this."

"I know. I just haven't had anyone close enough to talk to about Aaron aside from my parents since it happened," Amy said quietly.

Penny put her arms around Amy and held her for a moment. She thought about the woman she first met who was so closed off, and how Amy had changed so much in the time that they had become friends. Had she really been without any kind of close friends for nearly twenty years? Penny just held Amy while she cried. Sheldon had his hand on Amy's back and they just sat there like that for a while. Waiting in case Amy changed her mind and wanted to talk.

"Can I come back out now?" Leonard asked after about ten minutes of them just sitting there together.

"Yeah," Amy said. She knew this wasn't over, but she still couldn't bring herself to talk about it. Despite living so long without wanting love, it was nice having it from someone other than her parents. She could tell that Leonard was concerned when he came back out.

"You can tell him, but please no one else," Amy said after a moment. Then she disengaged from her boyfriend and her best friend and went back into Sheldon's room.

Sheldon followed her. Amy was just looking through his comic books. She didn't take any of the out of the bags. She was just looking at the covers when he caught up to her.

"I haven't cried about him once since the funeral," Amy said without looking up. "Here I am blubbering to you three times in a day."

"Maybe that's why you are crying. I couldn't talk about my dad for six months after he died without crying," Sheldon said.

That took Amy by surprise. She had heard Sheldon say a lot of nice and not so nice things about his father, but he was never emotional about it.

"I should go ask Penny if I can sleep on her couch. Thank you for the hospitality," Amy said.

"Stop being ridiculous. You are sleeping in my bed until you feel up to going home. If you don't want to share a bed with me, I'll sleep on the couch. However, I've discovered that it's quite pleasant to sleep with you in my bed. You are quite warm and soft. There is something very calming about your presence. That must have been what the dream was trying to tell me," Sheldon told her.

"I'm fine sharing a bed with you, Sheldon. Thank you," Amy said. "Okay. I'm tired. I'm going to go back to bed," Amy added as she put Sheldon's comic books back.

Sheldon walked over to Amy and kissed her softly on the lips. Then he walked Amy over to the bed and tucked her in again. Amy wasn't sure she liked it because Sheldon was fond of having the blankets up to her chin, but she let him do it anyway. Once he left again, Amy pulled them down a little and went to sleep.

Sheldon went back out into the living room to see Penny and Leonard quietly talking. He sat in his spot and watched as Penny finished telling Leonard what she knew. Then they both looked at Sheldon.

"She's sleeping," Sheldon told them. "It seems that she hasn't spoken of her brother in a very long time. It's been taking a bit of a toll on her to bring him up after so long. I think we should let it go," Sheldon said. It would kill him to see her in any more pain. He would do anything to make her feel better.

"I agree. She needs some time. If she wants to come to us, then that's fine, but we probably shouldn't push it. I've never seen her that fragile," Penny said.

"Maybe we should call her mom. Sheldon, do you have that number?" Leonard said.

"Tell on her to her mom? That seems a little harsh," Penny said.

"Not 'tell on her.' I was just thinking that maybe we could get a bit more of the story. Also, if Amy hasn't spoken to anyone else about this in nearly twenty years, maybe we can talk to the people she has talked to," Leonard explained.

Sheldon pulled out his phone. "Should I call?" he asked.

Leonard and Penny both nodded their heads, so Sheldon found Mrs. Fowler's number in his phone.

"Hello," Mrs. Fowler answered after a couple of rings.

"Hello, Mrs. Fowler? It's Sheldon Cooper. Amy's boyfriend," Sheldon said.

"Sheldon? Is everything okay?"

"Yes. Well, no, but Amy's fine. Well, not fine, but she isn't hurt or anything," Sheldon said.

"Young man, out with it. You're going to give me a heart attack," Mrs. Fowler finally cut Sheldon off.

"Amy told me about Aaron this morning," Sheldon said.

"Oh. Really? She won't even talk to me about him anymore. I didn't think she told her friends about him. She certainly wouldn't talk to that therapist we sent her to," Amy's mother told Sheldon.

"Well, she fell out of bed this morning, so I took her to the hospital. She's fine, but the hospital upset her quite a lot. I think it just sort of came out. She doesn't want to talk about it now. We were wondering if you thought we should just let it go," Sheldon said.

"No. I don't think you should hound her about it, but she's been very closed off for a long time. I miss my son everyday, but I allowed myself to grieve for him. I don't think Amy ever did. She just built up a wall and locked him away. I think you and your friends have been chipping away at that wall for a while. She's been much warmer in the last year. If she's telling you about her brother, she might be ready to talk about him again. Please, don't let this opportunity just pass by," Amy's mother pleaded.

"Okay," Sheldon agreed. He hated seeing Amy in pain, but he also believe that Amy's mother had a point.

"Sheldon?" Mrs. Fowler asked her tone turning sad.

"Yes, ma'am," Sheldon said.

"Next week would be Aaron's 29th birthday. My husband and I go to the grave site every year to visit him. Amy hasn't been since before she went away for college. I know it's a long shot, but it would mean a lot to me if you could get her to go. Of course, you and your friends are welcome to come as well. Whatever it takes to get Amy to open up again," Mrs Fowler said.

"We'll try," Sheldon promised. Then he wished Amy's mother a good night and hung up the phone. He explained to Penny and Leonard what he learned and told them of his promise to Amy's mother. They both agreed to help, but there was nothing more that could be done until morning.

Sheldon decided to go back to bed. He wasn't sure if he could sleep since he had taken that nap with Amy, but he wanted to be with her. She was asleep, but unlike earlier, when Sheldon got into bed, Amy immediately curled into his side. Sheldon knew he shouldn't be comfortable with Amy pressed right against him like that, but maybe Amy wasn't the only one who had built up walls that were starting to crumble. Sheldon just put his hand on her back again and let her stay where she was.

The next morning, Sheldon made breakfast for himself and Amy. She told him that she was fine. Other than the purple bruise that had formed on her elbow, all traces of her accident the day before were gone.

"Amy, I called your mother yesterday," Sheldon said. He didn't know how she would react, so he flinched back in case she hit him.

"Why?"

"You know why. She said that Aaron's birthday is next week. She wanted me to try to convince you to come out to visit him with us. Leonard and Penny are already planning on coming. We think that Wolowitz, Bernadette, and Raj will come too when we ask them," Sheldon said.

"Well, have a nice afternoon with my parents, Sheldon."

"Just think about it."

"No. Why do you want to go, anyway?"

"I want to learn more about who you are. I thought I knew you, and then I learn this huge secret. I told you about the time that my dad locked me out of the house overnight because he was tired of me staying up all night reading, and you didn't even hint about this. We might not be as physically intimate as you'd like, but I didn't think we kept secrets from each other," Sheldon said.

That last part was true. They normally didn't keep secrets from each other. Sheldon had told her a lot of his past. He told her secrets that only she knew, but she'd held back the greatest pain she had ever known. It had been easy to tell him about mean girls and performing surgery on her own feet, but she was always convinced that the mention of one little boy would send him running. Instead, he was still there. Still trying to help her though this.

"Okay. Okay, I'll go, but you have to promise me that you won't leave me for a minute and that you'll hold my hand if I want you to without complaint," Amy started. Sheldon nodded in agreement. "You can ask everyone else if they want to come," she added. Amy didn't want to admit that it sounded nice to have so many friends supporting her. She may never wanted their love, but she certainly had it. She knew that.

* * *

Amy was thinking of backing out. She'd been back in her own apartment for several days now (though she did stay an extra day at Sheldon's even after the power had been restored in her building), and she was starting to feel nervous about going to the grave with her parents. It had been more than ten years since she had been, and without Sheldon's constant reassurance that he and their friends would be there, she was getting cold feet. It was going to hurt. It was a day that always hurt. Why did she need to go somewhere special for that?

Still, Amy grabbed the few things she had located for today. It had taken some work, including clearing out her closet, but she found it. Now, it was safely in her bag as she went downstairs to wait for her friends. Leonard offered to come pick her up so she didn't have to arrive alone.

They arrived right on time, and Amy got into the backseat with Sheldon. He surprised her by grabbing her hand as soon as she was in the car and had her seat belt on. It was a quiet drive to the cemetery, but Sheldon would squeeze Amy's hand every once in a while. He just wanted to remind her that he was there.

Rajesh, Howard, and Bernadette were already waiting there with her parents. Amy's mother was happily chatting with Bernadette while Raj and Howard spoke with her father. It seemed that Howard was talking about his time in space. He was moving around like he was without gravity. Amy's father was laughing. She wondered how he could laugh in this place.

As Amy got out of the car and started walking over she saw that her mother brought flowers and balloons like she always had. Amy's mother ran forward and wrapped Amy in a hug.

"I'm so glad you came. Just because he's gone, doesn't mean we should ever stop celebrating the time that we had him," Mrs. Fowler said. There were tears in her eyes as she said it.

"You're crying, Mother. Why do you do this to yourself?" Amy asked.

"I do it because love and life are worth celebrating. You should never give up on them. Especially since it seems like you are just starting to find them again. Your friends are lovely, and even though your boyfriend seems a little strange, I can see he loves you. Please don't lock yourself away again," Amy's mother told her.

Amy nodded and let her mother lead her over. Then Amy had to go through the ordeal of being hugged by her father and each of her friends before she was returned to Sheldon. He didn't hug her, but he took her hand back.

Tears streamed down Amy's face as she listened to both of her parents speak to her little brother as though he was still there. They updated him on their lives and told them how much they missed him. They were words that Amy would have never been able to say. After about an hour, everyone was ready to move on to lunch.

"Wait," Amy said. It was the first time she had spoken in nearly an hour. Everyone stopped and turned to her. Amy sat on the ground near the side of the headstone. She pulled the picture book out from her bag. Aaron had been too old for the book even when he died, but it was always his favorite. Amy stopped on the page where "Aaron" had been written messily in crayon. She ran her fingertips over it briefly before turning the page. Amy cleared her throat and started reading in a clear voice.

"In the great green room there was a telephone and a red balloon and a picture of a cow jumping over the moon..." Amy read. By the time she got to "Goodnight noises everywhere," Amy's voice was so quiet and so broken that the people around her couldn't make out the words she was reading anymore.

When Amy finally rose again, Sheldon put his arms around her. Amy knew she wasn't anywhere near healed, but she knew she was exactly where she was supposed to be. One day it would be easier, and until then she had the love of Sheldon, her parents, and her friends to pull her through.


End file.
